Long-tailed Duck (click to see the larger version)

What nature giveth, nature also taketh away. Seeing a dead bird is always sad. Seeing a dead bird as beautiful as a male Long-tailed Duck is poignant. This deceased Long-tailed Duck was on Montrose Beach on April 3. The bird was alive (but apparently not well) the day before but for unknown reasons didn’t survive. The specimen will go to the Field Museum where it will be available to scientists and others to study. Long-tailed Ducks are regular visitors to Lake Michigan during the colder months of the year.